When I began tattooing in August 1977,the month I turned 18 and just a week after getting my first tattoo, which was a cobra, I knew I had found my calling in life's journey. Since then nearly everything I have done has been an effort to become a better Artist, specifically so i could do better tattoos. As an artist I have been blessed with many challenges and opportunities, a serendipity that continues everyday I live and especially at the tattoo shop, because you never know who is going to walk through our door or what they may want tattooed, and sometimes they don't even know what they want tattooed, and sometimes they don't even walk in, we have and occasional Maytag day), hence, the challenge, the blessings are many. To me few things are as appealing to look at as a well done tattoo, few things are as gratifying as the handshake I get from a happy customer, or hearing, "that's bad ass" from them, and of course, being able to actually make money doing this, indeed, makes me blessed. Of the many things I am, and believe me, I have more personalities than the web has sites, I'm a tattoo artist. If I could, after I got cremated, I'd tattoo myself with ink made from the soot of my own ashes. (hmm ,maybe I'll start saving my fingernail clipping for that:})) I don't really "specialize" in any specific manner of tattooing per se, such as color, or black or animals, oriental, animation, et cetera, I think I specialize in doing the right piece in the right place ,the right size, on the right person, keeping that in mind I feel a huge sense of responsibility to the people who are sincere in expressing themselves thru this time honored art form. I believe that mankind was tattooing long before any other arts were discovered. Because at some point, somebody stuck someone with a stick from the fire and the marks, never went away. The rest is history and I am proud to be a small part of it down here in the southwest corner of the states. I am influenced by everything artistically, however, there are two artist that set all the standards, DaVinci and Angelo. Need I say more? Names like Vargas, Rembrandt, Frazetta, Valejjo, Roger Dean, Ed Newton, Cosworth, Shelby, DeLoreon, Harley Davidson, Yunick, Petty, Einstein, Tesla, DeCoster, Roberts, Lyle Fisk, Lennon, McCartny, Colfax, Gump, and that's not even mentioning all the great tattoo artists I see published in tattoo magazines that I've never met. Closer to home though, Mike Sirot, Chris Reynolds, J.Rudy, K. Barba, J.Parker, R. Jensen, Bald Bill and last but not least, my co-worker for more than 31/2 years, Da man himself, a lifer in the life, Brent, plus a bunch more who will be mentioned later on in life.

The biz of tattoo's
I'd like our customers to know a few things about our business. 1st,if you are sick or just recovering from an illness we ask that you do not come in the shop, so please do not be offended if we ask you to leave if you are sneezing and coughing. Children should not be brought into the shop as well. It is also appreciated if you dress appropriately, what I mean by this is that it is not a good idea to wear your best white shirt or blouse if you are getting work done on your upper body, or nylons if you are getting work done around you ankles, the inks we use are permanent and will not wash out. We make all of our needles in house and follow very strict sterilization procedures, we are inspected annually by the health dept(always passing)and educated in pathogen control and cross contamination. All of our piercing needle and tattoo needles are single use items and discarded in accordance with our local guidelines Our Autoclave, which you can view upon request, is spore tested regularly to ensure its proper operation. Also, if you have seen a specific design that you want for a tattoo, for instance, a star, bring that design with you, because there are many ways to do a star, the Dallas Cowboys have one, Carls Jr, the flag, this saves time that could be spent tattooing instead of guessing and sketching out who knows how many stars. It is also important to care for your tattoo. We will direct you verbally during or after the procedure and provide you with written instructions before you leave the shop. As a rule, we charge by the piece, not the hour. So that's about a drop in the bucket when it come to me n tattoos, for a more in depth look(if you've even read this far)at me and art, click through the following pages or come see me working at www.classic tattoo.cc. My days off are Tuesday and Wednesday. Hope to see ya soon.

Sincerely,

Dean Dierolf.

I'd like to say thax to the 7000 plus people I've tattooed in San Diego in the past few years, and though I may not remember your face, I will definitely remember your tattoo, I've got a few thousand tats in No. Cal as well, so drop me a line if you come across this page, I always like seeing my work from previous years.